tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81700585556431576792018-03-07T14:44:42.744-08:00Somnolent AphidA quiet little atheist, finding his voice.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.comBlogger117125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-2081268824217379562018-01-06T07:52:00.000-08:002018-01-06T07:52:26.020-08:00Software DemoPraying overnight that the software will run and be demonstrable for the customer the next day turns out to be one of the least effective methods of product management.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-73120844866835789422015-11-19T14:19:00.002-08:002015-11-19T14:19:22.802-08:00who created god?<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 16px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px;">Oh I am on a roll today boys and girls.</span><br /><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 16px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;">It just struck me that once upon our time, way way back in the ancient past, going back well more than 6,000 years ago, there was no god. There were no priests, no religions, no nothing other than a bunch of people trying to stay warm and stay fed and fend off whatever predators there were. And those people were atheists, by definition. You see, they had no god to believe in, so they didn't believe in god.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;">And at least one of those atheists invented god, and a whole god story to support it. And that was just the start of it. That was just the tip of the iceberg. But it is the only thing that explains the existence of god, as far as I can see. &nbsp;</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;">An atheist invented him.&nbsp;</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;">And that is just mind blowing.</span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left; widows: 1;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'll go deeper some day but this is just... mind blowing.</span></div>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-76321737715550678282015-02-19T14:27:00.002-08:002015-02-19T14:27:51.552-08:00Anti-Science, Moby Dick, Climate Change... By the time you feel warmer it will be far too late.<br /><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; orphans: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">In rereading Moby Dick I came across these paragraphs in Chapter 32, the seeds of which are &nbsp;arguments, whether tongue in cheek or not, against science. &nbsp;Melville's character starts by saying that the science is uncertain. He then goes on to make it sound ridiculous that anyone could even conceive that a whale were anything but a fish. The fancy latin words of egghead Linnaeus cannot compare to the direct experience of shipmates and friends, who declare the former to be nothing but humbug. &nbsp;Then in the third paragraph he invokes the story of Jonah, wherein the bible calls the whale a fish, and that settles the fundamental thing.</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; orphans: auto; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><i>First: The uncertain, unsettled condition of this science of Cetology is in the very vestibule attested by the fact, that in some quarters it still remains a moot point whether a whale be a fish. In his System of Nature, A.D. 1776, Linnaeus declares, "I hereby separate the whales from the fish." But of my own knowledge, I know that down to the year 1850, sharks and shad, alewives and herring, against Linnaeus's express edict, were still found dividing the possession of the same seas with the Leviathan.</i></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><i>The grounds upon which Linnaeus would fain have banished the whales from the waters, he states as follows: "On account of their warm bilocular heart, their lungs, their movable eyelids, their hollow ears, penem intrantem feminam mammis lactantem," and finally, "ex lege naturae jure meritoque." I submitted all this to my friends Simeon Macey and Charley Coffin, of Nantucket, both messmates of mine in a certain voyage, and they united in the opinion that the reasons set forth were altogether insufficient. Charley profanely hinted they were humbug.</i></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><i>Be it known that, waiving all argument, I take the good old fashioned ground that the whale is a fish, and call upon holy Jonah to back me. This fundamental thing settled, the next point is, in what internal respect does the whale differ from other fish. Above, Linnaeus has given you those items. But in brief, they are these: lungs and warm blood; whereas, all other fish are lungless and cold blooded.</i></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Friends, anti-science thinking, call it denialism, has been around as long as there have been scientists. &nbsp; In this example it comes down to the distrust of organized and disciplined thought and the fancy words that precisely describe the topic compared to the direct experience and the agreement of drinking buddies and messmates.</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-top: 0.25em; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1em; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">In my first argument with a climate skeptic some years ago went a little something like this. &nbsp;She asked, "So when am I going to feel warmer?". &nbsp;But what she was really asking for the direct experience of the thing itself vs the fine grained measurements and analysis of the scientific community. Her close friends had also called climate change nothing but humbug, so she felt she was in good company with this opinion I guess. &nbsp;If I'd had my wits about me I would have rejoined, "By the time you feel warmer it will be far too late".</div>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-63323209478645149752014-12-09T06:51:00.002-08:002014-12-09T06:51:49.844-08:00I'd RatherThe sign reads, "I would rather live my life as if there is a god and die to find out there isn't, than live my life as if there isn't and die to find out there is."<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YtrERs41HC8/VIcBf9oDDjI/AAAAAAAAAAw/0pKeosgbojo/s1600/sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YtrERs41HC8/VIcBf9oDDjI/AAAAAAAAAAw/0pKeosgbojo/s1600/sign.jpg" height="158" width="320" /></a></div>There is so much wrong with this picture. &nbsp;But I love logic puzzles, and this is an old one.<br /><br />Let's break it down. &nbsp;First off, it is a simple restatement of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascal%27s_Wager">Pascal's Wager</a>. &nbsp;The wikipedia article makes for&nbsp;good reading.<br /><br />But here's my own simple analysis. &nbsp;And I'm no Pascal, but I'll try anyway.<br /><br />First off, and not to be picky, but why is it in quotes? &nbsp;Did somebody actually say this? &nbsp;And if so, who? &nbsp;A great inspirational leader I suppose. &nbsp;And if not, perhaps the sign maker? &nbsp;Pretty sure it wasn't Jesus.<br /><br />Basically, what it says to me is that I would rather live my life with one set of beliefs only to find out when I die that they were wrong, than to live my life with a different set of beliefs only to find out they were also wrong. &nbsp;And that just sounds absurd. <br /><br />Stated differently, "I'd rather live my life thinking I'm right and die to find out I'm wrong, than to live my life thinking I'm wrong and find out I was right". &nbsp;It's just mixed up and crazy when put like that. &nbsp;Not so inspirational now, I guess. &nbsp;So let's move on.<br /><br /><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Next, the statement itself requires that I will live past my own death to find out whether I was wrong or not. &nbsp;Well, that seems absurd. &nbsp;But let's make that part of what belief in god is, remembering that not all belief systems require and afterlife. &nbsp;"I would rather live my life as if there were an afterlife and find out there is not, than live my life thinking there wasn't and find out there was." &nbsp;Ah, there's some meat on the bone at last. &nbsp;But again, if there isn't an afterlife you'll never know it. &nbsp;If there is, then we're back to Pascal's Wager, an absurd paradox.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br /></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">So let's take that out and have it read,&nbsp;"I would rather live my life as if there is a god, than to live my life as if there isn't." &nbsp;That seems more straight forward. &nbsp;But then you have to ask what god, or which god, and does it matter? &nbsp;Can you choose your god? &nbsp;There are quite a few of them, and even quite a few interpretations of something so seemingly fundamental as the christian god. Again, it gets very confusing.</div><div><br /></div><div>And how would your life be different if there was or was not a god? &nbsp;How would you live differently in either case? &nbsp;Maybe I'd be forgiven for my trespasses or something. &nbsp;But I live a good life and I don't have all that many trespasses to worry about. &nbsp;But maybe it's different for you. &nbsp;I'd like to know.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the end, the truest words in this sign are the first six. &nbsp;"I would rather live my life". &nbsp;So I'll go do that now.</div><br /><br />Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-54701489755925726622014-12-09T05:55:00.000-08:002014-12-09T05:55:20.361-08:00Pray for meI'm kidding.<br /><br />Praying might help you free your mind of worry and in so doing think up a way to actually help the other person. &nbsp;But praying for someone else cannot possibly do any good unless you also take some action. &nbsp;In fact it can do just the opposite. &nbsp;In fact, there's a study, quoted in the NYTimes, that says praying for post operative heart patients statistically created more stress and worse outcomes, Once they hear that people are praying for them, they tend to think they must be much sicker than they thought they were, which adds to their stress. &nbsp;So, long story short, it's really best never to pray for other people.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-84443553260100477472014-09-13T09:49:00.000-07:002014-09-13T09:49:06.425-07:00On my theory of BeliefOK, this is a biggie. &nbsp;It came to me this past month as I was struggling with some things. &nbsp;I don't know if this will make sense, but I'm going to try.<br /><br />It started when I got a new Android phone. &nbsp;A great phone. &nbsp;Lots of people use them. &nbsp;So I had this new phone and about a week after I got it I went on a trip to Nashville to visit my son. &nbsp;All of that went fine. &nbsp;This isn't really about the trip, although to some extent it is. &nbsp;You see the return flight was scheduled for 6;30 AM, which meant, working backwards, I'd have to get up a 4:30, do all my morning stuff and try to get to the airport by 5:30 at the latest. &nbsp;I always like to give myself an hour.<br /><br />So, I set my alarm on my new phone for 4;30, just in the same way I'd always done on my old phone. &nbsp;I'd used the alarm on the new phone a few times for work related stuff, so I was confident about using it for this flight. &nbsp;Of course if I missed the flight, that would be really bad.<br /><br />I slept well. &nbsp;My wife's alarm went off. &nbsp;She did her stuff. &nbsp;I dozed waiting for my alarm. &nbsp;Even though we'd agreed on a 4:30 wake up, I figured she'd set hers for 4:00 since that's what the clock on my phone said. &nbsp;Around the same time I noticed the clock on the bed table said 4:32, which I took to mean that someone, some dickhead obviously, had changed the time on that clock to make it about half an hour fast. <br /><br />Then my wife gets out of the shower and asks me why I'm not getting ready. &nbsp;That's when it struck me that my phone/clock was off by exactly 30 minutes. &nbsp;OK, so how does that even happen? &nbsp;That's a whole 'nother discussion.<br /><br />The point of this little though exercise is that because I owned the clock/phone, and because I had set it myself, I believed it to be right, even in the face of two controverting facts. &nbsp;1) My wife's alarm went off and she got up, and 2) the bedside table clock was 30 minutes ahead of my clock.<br /><br />The power of belief is such that it can lead us to completely color the perceptions of things happening to us. &nbsp;I thought the rest of the world must be wrong, that my clock must be right.<br /><br />But that's not the only time it happened.<br /><br />Well, I figured out why the clock was off. &nbsp;Actually I didn't figure out why it was off, I just figured out that it was not set to pick up the network time. &nbsp;Once I found that configuration option the time on the phone changed to the correct local time.<br /><br />So later that same week I found myself driving from Buffalo to Rochester for a 9:00 AM meeting. &nbsp;It's just over an hour drive and I wanted to get there early so I figured I'd leave Buffalo by 7:00, settle into Spot Coffee on East Street by 8:15 and it would be all ducky for my 9:00 AM meeting. &nbsp;I set the alarm for 6:15AM.<br /><br />The morning of the meeting I got up as the alarm rang, showered and packed, and then checked one of the games I habitually play. &nbsp;Now I knew that a certain time in the game was supposed to run out overnight, but I saw that it had not. &nbsp;That should have been a clue.<br /><br />I had the hotel breakfast and noticed that the restaurant was really empty. &nbsp;That should have been a clue. &nbsp;I got in my car and noticed that the clock radio was set an hour early. &nbsp;That should have been a clue. &nbsp;All of these clues that I'd gotten up an hour early and it never occurred to me that my phone was off by an hour until I got to Rochester and Spot Coffee wasn't open yet.<br /><br />So this is the set up. &nbsp;These are the events that got me thinking about the power of belief, and how it can radically change our perceptions of the real world.<br /><br />I'll write more about this later..Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-1112202091268880582014-06-19T09:46:00.001-07:002014-06-19T09:46:21.223-07:00P Z MeyersWe heard P Z Meyers speak last night at the Mark Twain house in Hartford, CT. &nbsp;It's funny because I didn't know he was speaking. &nbsp;I went because a friend wanted to go to a lecture. &nbsp;When we got there they had his book for sale in the lobby, but it still didn't sink in. &nbsp;Finally when he took the stage and they announced him I understood who we were seeing. &nbsp;I guess I'll do almost anything for a friend.<br /><br />Now, I'm no great fan of Mr. Meyers. &nbsp;I find his blog a tiresome mix of cynicism, god-baiting, rabble rousing and self worship. &nbsp;During his lecture he was much toned down from his blog persona, a persona which adequately obscures his lack of depth. &nbsp;So I was a bit relieved, and a bit disappointed. &nbsp;When I saw who it was I expected to not enjoy myself very much, but as it was, it was far better than sitting at home and watching TV.<br /><br />The title of his new book, by the way, is "The Happy Atheist", which I take to be carefully crafted in direct conflict with his opponents who call him one of the Angry Atheists. &nbsp;There was very little anger last night. &nbsp;No fire and brimstone. &nbsp;Some amusing stories.<br /><br />He explained himself well in one respect, that is how be came to be the Pharyngula Blog author and what one might reasonably call an Angry Atheist. &nbsp;It was only he came to teach Biology at UM that he started to run into Christians who opposed his teachings, siting utter rubbish based on no scientific facts. &nbsp;They made his life difficult, and apparently Pharyngula was in response to those people. &nbsp;It grew from there.<br /><br />He's mellowed, or so he says, from the times when he desecrated crackers and led students on a field trip to the Creation Museum.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-61256356389909641622014-06-01T21:16:00.002-07:002014-06-01T21:17:31.567-07:00What Religion Are You?"What Religion are you?" she asked. <br />"How often do you fuck your husband?", I responded.<br /><br /><br />Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-28431115734042886432014-05-13T05:38:00.002-07:002014-05-13T05:38:31.534-07:00God, can I ask You a question?<br />Me: God, can I ask You a question?<br />God:<br />Me: Promise You won't get mad<br />God:<br />Me: Why did You let so much stuff happen to me today?<br />God:<br />Me: Well, I woke up late<br />God:<br />Me: My car took forever to start<br />God:<br />Me: at lunch they made my sandwich wrong &amp; I had to wait<br />God:<br />Me: On the way home, my phone went DEAD, just as I picked up a call<br />God:<br />Me: And on top of it all off, when I got home ~I just want to soak my feet in my new foot massager &amp; relax. BUT it wouldn't work!!! Nothing went right today! Why did You do that?<br />God:<br />Me (humbled): OH, I probably should have set my alarm clock since knew I had important meeting, but I went to bed drunk and said fuck it. &nbsp;My bad!<br />GOD:<br />Me: (ashamed) And my car hasn't started right for weeks. &nbsp;I should probably get that looked at. &nbsp;I know it needs a new battery. Nobody's fault but mine.<br />God:<br />Me (embarrassed): And I know the lunch server. &nbsp;She's is going through some tough times. &nbsp;I could have been more understanding instead of getting all huffy. &nbsp;What's a little cheese?<br />God:<br />Me (softly): And cell phones suck, I know that. Calls always drop. &nbsp;I probably shouldn't have been talking while driving anyway. &nbsp;Good thing there's caller ID on this thing. &nbsp;I can see who it was and call them back later, unless it was a telemarketer. &nbsp;Even God can't stop telemarketers.<br />God:<br />Me: And OMG! What am I doing? &nbsp;Why do I have to make this stuff all about me? &nbsp;And why do I have to pretend that someone did stuff TO me? &nbsp;That sounds so unhealthy!<br />God:<br />Me: I really need to start to trust myself, work on my relationships, get some excercise instead of relying on a foot massager, eat better, drink less, spend less time on facebook, etc.<br />God:<br />Me: Hmmm.... Taking an active role in my own happiness... That actually sounds like a pretty good plan.<br />God:<br />REPOST if you Believe in HIM<br />Worth posting.<br />Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-84177743866900058822014-04-21T06:59:00.001-07:002014-04-21T06:59:07.831-07:00Easter Sunday ServiceOn Easter Sunday we were treated to the Missa Gaia. which we didn't realize was not only based on the structure of the Catholic Mass, but contained parts of it. &nbsp;When we came to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatitudes">Beatitudes</a> I almost lost it. &nbsp;Part of the Sermon on the Mount, they proclaim that the meek, the poor, those in mourning, the hungry and thirsty, the merciful the peacemakers, the pure of heart, and the persecuted all suffer in this life but will find their rewards in heaven... and... yeah... I have a problem with that. While it's true that we all suffer to some extent in this life, the only reward after death is death itself, as in no longer being a participant in this world. &nbsp;If you think that's a reward then I feel sorry for you, and you need to work to improve your lot right now and right here. &nbsp;There is no other way.<br /><br />Last week there was an article in the <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-myths-about-easter/2014/04/18/e7e8c6fe-c640-11e3-8b9a-8e0977a24aeb_story.html">WaPost about five myths of Easter</a>. &nbsp;It closed with "<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14.857142448425293px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.5px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">Choose not to believe in the Resurrection, and Jesus is just another prophet. Believe in the Resurrection, and your whole life changes</span>". &nbsp;And yes, that's true. &nbsp;Once you choose to believe in the Ressurection, you have to believe in a whole parcel of other stuff that comes along with it, otherwise the Ressurection is impossible and doesn't make any sense. &nbsp;Much of what you have to believe in support of the Ressurection is just horrible stuff, most of which is either just not true, or not applicable in today's modern world.<br /><br />So let me counter that. &nbsp;If you choose NOT to believe in ressurections your whole life changes <b>for the better</b>, because things finally make sense. &nbsp;Reject heaven and god, all things become clear and you are able to live in the here and now, which is where it all takes place. Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-36612729747865989702013-10-31T06:58:00.001-07:002014-04-21T06:59:49.288-07:00SMBC Comics on God, Math and ReligionThe point is, if you want certainly about god, you're almost certainly wrong. &nbsp;Better to doubt or admit that you can't understand the complexity of the world than to accept an answer that is ... well... you get it...<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.smbc-comics.com/comics/20131031.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.smbc-comics.com/comics/20131031.png" height="640" width="310" /></a></div>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-22657864964629001672013-10-27T10:12:00.003-07:002013-10-27T10:12:54.051-07:00If Prayers WorkedIf prayers worked I would pray for your healing. I really truly would. &nbsp;I would spend every waking minute prostrating myself and doing whatever it took to get the almighty to intervene and make right whatever's wrong with you or your spouse or your child or your relative or friend.<br /><br />But prayers don't work like that. &nbsp;So instead I'll work for more fair and equitable healthcare, to help get you access to doctors and hospitals and medicines who actually can heal you when you need them. &nbsp;That seems like a better use of our time here on earth, so I hope you'll accept that instead of prayer. &nbsp;It turns out to be a lot more work.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-74599824147189451672013-06-03T15:26:00.001-07:002013-06-03T15:26:08.697-07:00Bob<span class="userContent" data-ft="{&quot;tn&quot;:&quot;K&quot;}"><br /> Amanda: How is the Dalai Lama the reincarnation of the Buddah if he achieved Nirvana?<br /> Bob: I was raised Roman Catholic. If you want someone to explain conflicting religious mysteries, you got the wrong guy.</span>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-55947544957535580072013-05-22T12:20:00.000-07:002013-05-22T12:20:00.432-07:00A Pope for the Atheists<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333332; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 15.333333015441895px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">We all have a duty to do good. And this commandment for everyone to do good, I think, is a beautiful path towards peace. If we, each doing our own part, if we do good to others, if we meet there, doing good, and we go slowly, gently, little by little, we will make that culture of encounter: we need that so much. We must meet one another doing good. ‘But I don’t believe, Father, I am an atheist!’ But do good: we will meet one another there,” –&nbsp;</span><a href="http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/05/22/pope_at_mass:_culture_of_encounter_is_the_foundation_of_peace/en1-694445" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #82bd1a; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 15.333333015441895px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank">Pope Francis</a><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333332; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 15.333333015441895px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">, in a homily today (5/22/2013)</span><br /><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333332; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 15.333333015441895px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333332; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 15.333333015441895px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/05/22/pope_at_mass:_culture_of_encounter_is_the_foundation_of_peace/en1-694445">http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/05/22/pope_at_mass:_culture_of_encounter_is_the_foundation_of_peace/en1-694445</a></span>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-81007565339914273752013-03-30T11:33:00.000-07:002013-03-30T11:33:08.638-07:00She is risen!Everyone knows that they only ate unleavened bread during passover. And then three days later the bread would rise again because of naturally occurring yeast. Everyone would see that and yell Happy Yeaster! which today we shorten to Happy 'Easter.<br /><br />And in France they used to sell matzos in packs of 12, which is why they call it Paques.<br /><br />There's always a simpler answer for everything.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-58506992822759144122013-03-17T19:03:00.001-07:002013-03-17T19:03:44.096-07:00Andrew Sullivan almost gets it rightIn his interview with Hitch...&nbsp;http://dish.andrewsullivan.com/2013/03/17/hitch-and-sully-why-should-i-deserve-forgiveness &nbsp;they talk about forgiveness, they talk about weapons of mass distraction, but I think he leaves it hanging at the end... asking why do you think it (the use of nuclear weapons) hasn't happened (beyond WWII).. and leaves it hanging... I'm sure Hitch had an answer. &nbsp;And I'm certain that it wasn't that god was saving us for something else... Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-63845979716833177602013-03-12T08:00:00.001-07:002013-03-12T08:00:19.808-07:00SinIt's a sin to tell a lie. <br />It's not a lie of you believe it - George Constanza<br />It is one of the problems with religion. &nbsp;Belief makes all things possible. &nbsp;Even lies.&nbsp;Most religions are steeped in lies and belief makes it OK to hold onto them and cherish them and even fight for them. &nbsp;All religions. &nbsp;Mine too by the way. &nbsp;Let's not quibble. &nbsp;We just try to separate fact and fiction for what they are. &nbsp;And the facts are often murky, requiring a webbing of intricate lies and false assumptions to support them.<br /><br /><div><br /></div><br />But this was about sin. &nbsp;I've come to think that sins are those things that bad about having done. &nbsp; And this changes over time, &nbsp;What we did once, and might have felt good about, can become an embarrassment or feel like a mistake hours, days, weeks, or years later. &nbsp;There are also things that we feel forced to do that we might not feel good about. &nbsp;And there are things that happen to us, that we might feel, in hindsight, that we had some hand in their happening. &nbsp;There are probably more aspects to this than I can write in this short blog.<br /><br />Maybe this confuses guilt and sin. &nbsp;Maybe they are one in the same. &nbsp;I'm going to cogitate this a little more.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-81859357787262695742013-02-25T04:14:00.000-08:002013-02-25T04:14:13.949-08:00Comment Moderation OnAttack language of any kind is not acceptable and will not be engaged here. &nbsp; Comment moderation is on now. Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-22776505812456060522013-02-24T05:59:00.002-08:002013-02-24T05:59:40.623-08:00Andrew Sullivan gets it wrong again - premarital sexIn his article, Which Religions are Most Chaste, http://dish.andrewsullivan.com/2013/02/24/which-religions-are-the-most-chaste, &nbsp;Sullivan makes a big mistake. &nbsp;He takes data on "Reported Premarital Sex" and tries to make it into which religions are a<i>ctually</i> most chaste. &nbsp;In fact, this is a chart on something more complicated. &nbsp;It is a chart about how people in different religions <i>self-report</i>&nbsp;on premarital sex. &nbsp;Anyone faced with being stoned to death for sex outside of marriage, as in the old testament, might think twice about how they self report their involvement in premarital sex. Again, he takes the facts and spins them to his alternate purpose.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-30387803359194729512013-02-24T05:50:00.001-08:002013-02-24T05:50:23.285-08:00No movie for old atheistsI'm talking, of course, about the big hit, The Life of Pi. <br /><br />Why does God need to get layered on top of a good story? &nbsp;The answer is in Pi. &nbsp;God makes for better story telling. &nbsp;God adds drama. &nbsp;God adds passion. &nbsp;God adds a villain. &nbsp;God adds someone to yell at when you're all alone on a boat.&nbsp;At the end of it, my wife and I turned to each other and asked WTF?<br /><br />Does it make you believe? &nbsp;Not at all. &nbsp;It simply lifts the veil on how stories are constructed. &nbsp;You know what would have made an even better story? &nbsp;Talking animals. &nbsp;I mean if the point is to tell a good story, then why not?<br /><br />Not my favorite movie of the year.Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-73661876646320774822012-09-14T12:15:00.000-07:002012-09-14T12:15:10.706-07:00I love Dr. Pepper<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://s3-ec.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/web03/2012/9/14/11/enhanced-buzz-30987-1347634889-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://s3-ec.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/web03/2012/9/14/11/enhanced-buzz-30987-1347634889-13.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>For forwarding the conversation... &nbsp; One of my favorite comment postings goes something like this, "Not Progress. &nbsp;Man did not evolve from an ape. &nbsp;If so that would mean god was an ape." &nbsp;And I wonder what's wrong with that? &nbsp;Of course god was an ape. &nbsp;God is everything and nothing. &nbsp;More pepper!Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-79167586981003001242012-08-25T17:27:00.001-07:002012-08-25T17:27:35.431-07:00I am a denier<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #333333; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 21px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">&nbsp;I am a six-day-creation, young-Earth denier, but a denier none the less.</span>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-82443143657892973582012-08-14T04:03:00.000-07:002012-08-14T04:11:50.305-07:00Phil PlaitGenius - at around 4:50... this might be where I got the idea that when you try to debunk something people replace that thought with something else. &nbsp;Actually, the entire talk is brilliant.<br /><a href="http://vimeo.com/13704095">http://vimeo.com/13704095</a>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-52032811989732864002012-08-13T13:19:00.002-07:002012-08-13T13:19:41.283-07:00Andrew SullivanSometimes he's brilliant. &nbsp;Article about the falsehood that the US was born a Christian Nation -&nbsp;<a href="http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/08/the-truth-about-the-jefferson-lies.htm">http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/08/the-truth-about-the-jefferson-lies.htm</a>Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8170058555643157679.post-30540703104257246632012-07-15T06:55:00.003-07:002012-07-15T06:55:55.607-07:00Brilliant<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.smbc-comics.com/comics/20120715.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.smbc-comics.com/comics/20120715.gif" width="258" /></a></div><br />Somnolent Aphidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03391685975835366831noreply@blogger.com0